AFTER sin is pardoned, and the pardoned sinner is enabled to fight the good fight of faith against it, yet there is another enemy assaulting him to the last moment of his life. Fallen man is born to trouble. The man in Christ is so far from being exempt, that many are the troubles of the righteous. He is, in common with others, liable to pain and poverty, and to afflictions of every kind: he is, by his very profession, exposed to some of the most trying nature: his owning Christ–his following Christ–his conformity to Christ–give offence, provoke the malice of wicked men, and the rage of wicked spirits. Wave does not follow wave more certainly, than every day brings its fresh troubles, and forces the believer to seek for aids and comforts out of himself.
This is a sore fight of afflictions. To bear up under them with any patience, and to reap profit from them, is a task above the power of mere man. Every little pain stirs up murmuring and impatience, and this rebellion against God's will is the parent of a thousand fretful tempers; and these exercised by sharp suffering, render the man truly miserable. If his suffering continues long, increases much, it often drives the poor sinner to despair; and if he has no Saviour to flee unto, he is sometimes guilty of self-murder, and dies in an act of sin, rushing headlong into everlasting destruction–the wisdom of man, of Cato himself, furnishing no better remedy against the numerous evils of human life.
To man thus exposed to suffering, and helpless under it, his suffering remaining as long as sin remains, how necessary must be the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ! He has vouchsafed to give us his promises of' help, suited to every possible case of distress. When it is his will that any of his people should be tried, he engages to make tho trial of their faith much more precious than that of gold, which perisheth, lie is with them, present with his divine supports and holy comforts. "Call upon me," says he, "in the day of trouble; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me. Many are the troubles of the righteous, but out of them all the Lord delivereth them." They acknowledge it with gratitude: "God was our refuge and strength, we have found him a very present help in trouble;" helping us to bear up under the heaviest pressures, keeping his everlasting arms underneath us, as long as we suffer; and if the sufferings increase, increasing our faith and patience, until they have done their perfect work.
When, through the aids of his Spirit, these promises have their full credit, through his inward peace, which ho alone can give, and which the world cannot take away,-when he makes the heart to feel happy in God, enjoying the peculiar supports of the gospel, and living up to its privileges, then the believer finds the apostle's experience to be true–" always sorrowful, yet always rejoicing,' and sometimes with a fulness of joy, according to what is written: "But now, thus saith the Lord, that created thee, O Jacob, and he that formed thee, O Israel! FEAR NOT; for I have redeemed thee; I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine; when thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee; when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burnt, neither shall the flames kindle upon thee; for I am the Lord thy, God, the Holy one of Israel, thy Saviour; FEAR NOT, for I am with thee," to support, to deliver.
This is spoken to the redeemed, who are God's property, and whom he bought with a great price. What could the Lord God engage to do for them more than is here promised, in order to still all their guilty fears, and to quiet all their natural fears. Trusting to the redemption that is in the blood of the Lamb, they are under his keeping; they go out in his strength to meet their trials and their enemies. Jesus is with them on their side; and therefore, believing in him, they need not fear any suffering. Jehovah is their Alehim, their covenant God in Trinity, their sworn allies, engaged by his almighty arm to save them from all evil, and to give them all possible good. "I the Lord," says he, "do keep thee–I will water thee with the dew of heaven every moment–lest any hurt thee. I will keep thee night and day."
Having such great and exceeding precious promises, with what holy courage should the believer look up to a faithful God; and what strong consolation should they afford him, when he is to go through the fire, or through the water. He may sing with Jonah, "I will sacrifice unto thee with the voice of thanksgiving–salvation is of the Lord." Or with the triumphant faith of the three children, who were not afraid to go into the furnace, heated seven times hotter than usual, fully persuaded that, whether they lived or died, Jesus would be with them. Threatened with the burning fiery furnace, if they refused to worship Nebuchadnezzar's image, they said, "O King, we are not careful to answer thee in this matter; if it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver is out of thy hand, 0 king." And he did; he went with them into the fire, and they walked in the midst the flames unhurt.
The same Jesus is daily repeating the same miracle. He has approved himself in all ages to be the friend of his afflicted people; whatever he sends to them, he sends it with his blessing. So they testify–" We know that ALL things work together for good to them that love God." They knew it by his promise, and they felt it by experience: it is good for us that we have been in trouble; we have gone through many seas and storms of affliction, and through the ragtag fire of persecution, not only unhurt, but benefited; for Christ was with us. As the sufferings of Christ abounded, so our consolation abounded by Christ: he feels for them as his members, and has bowels of the tenderest compassion. In all their affliction he is afflicted. He brings in his supports, and comes with his deliverance in the best time. He leaves no accusation of sin in the conscience, but gives and maintains a sweet peace with God.
O what matter of triumph is it, when this peace rules in the heart, always and by all means testifying–" Since God is for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth, who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." Thanks without ceasing be to Jesus, the Lamb that was slain, for the complete and eternal victory over sin;" the apostle carries on his praises (Rom. viii.), that through Jesus all outward opposition shall fall before us–" Who shall separate ns from Christ's love to us? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written–For thy sake, we are killed all the day long, we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter; nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors, through him that hath loved us."
His love is in them all–appoints them, sends them proportions them, and 'they conquer them all in his strength; not only conquer, but are more than conquerors; they are great gainers; they gain what is better than all the world,–fresh proof of his love; they gain experience of it; for they find that nothing can hurt them, now he has taken them under his protection. For this divine support, we are taught to pray daily, asking it as a matter of mere favour, and expecting it only through the grace and intercession of our great High Priest.
"We humbly beseech thee, O Father, mercifully to look upon our infirmities; and, for the glory of thy name, turn from us all those evils which we most righteously have deserved; and grant that, in all our troubles, we may put our whole trust and confidence in thy mercy, and evermore serve thee in holiness, and pureness of living, to thy honour and glory, through our only Mediator and Advocate, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."
When this is the prayer of faith, outward trials become inward mercies, for the Holy Spirit keeps the heart settled with its whole trust and confidence upon his promised help; so that if the trials increase, he makes them redound to the glory of God. If the outward man be a greater sufferer, even ready to perish, he renews the inward man day by day; he brings in abundant grace to sanctify abundant sufferings, whereby he satisfies the hearts of the sufferers, that these light afflictions, which are but for a moment, will work for them a far more excellent and eternal weight of glory. The hope of this keeps, them patient and thankful. By the power of the Holy Ghost, they know this eternal triumph will be soon. Yet a very, very little while they will be soon. the sight of the King in his beauty; they shall sit down with him in his throne; and shah reign with him forever and ever.
For the further confirmation of our faith, he has set before us a cloud of witnesses, who testify, with one voice, that he sanctified all their troubles, and turned them into covenant blessings. So one of them said–" I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth; my soul shah make her boast in the Lord; the humble shall hear thereof, and be glad: O magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he heard, and delivered me from all my fears. The righteous cry, and the Lord heareth, and delivereth them out of all their troubles;" their very troubles become matter of triumph; he shut them up in the ark, and they were saved, when he drowned the world of the ungodly.
Peter, speaking from experience, says, The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of their troubles, as he did righteous Lot, when he overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. The more the Egyptians oppressed his people, the more they multiplied and grew. Behold the ash burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed. The fire of persecution raged against the church, but the blood of the martyrs was fruitful, and increased it both in number and in grace. The seed of the wicked one hath been a, enmity with the children of the promise from the beginning; but these trusted in the Captain of their salvation, and he led them on conquering and to conquer. "Through faith they subdued kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, waxed valiant in fight, turned to flight the armies of the aliens, women received their dead raised to life again, and others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection."
These and the other worthies mentioned (Hebrews, chap. xi.), did wonders through Christ, who strengthened them: they loved not their lives unto death, fully persuaded, that when ho should call them to it, he would be with them, and would enable them to finish their course with joy. And he did; for they all obtained a good report through faith, leaving us an example to follow the steps of their faith, and encouraging us to do it with holy boldness, whatever troubles we meet with in our way. We may, we ought to rejoice in tribulation; for we have tho same Jesus to look unto, the Author and the Finisher of their faith and ours; the same promises of his support, the same almighty arm to make them good, and the same matter of triumph which they experienced, whom he led on from strength to strength, until every one of them in Sion appeared before God. This is the certain heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness and salvation is of me, saith the Lord.
Of the same sentiments were our reformers, which they give us in these remarkable words in one of their prayers: "O God, who art the author of peace and ]over of concord, in knowledge of whom standeth our eternal life, whoso service is perfect freedom, defend us thy humble servants in all assaults of our enemies, that we, surely trusting in thy defence, may not fear the power of any adversaries, through the might of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen."
And to the same purpose in one of their homilies, they thus express themselves:–"All correction' which God sendeth us in this present time, seemeth to have no joy and comfort, but sorrow and pain, yet it bringeth with it a taste of God's mercy and goodness towards them that be so corrected, and a sure hope of God's everlasting consolation in heaven. If then these sorrows, diseases, and sicknesses, and also death itself, be nothing else but our heavenly Father's rod, whereby he certifieth us of his love and gracious favour, whereby' he trieth and purifieth us, whereby he giveth unto us holiness, and certifieth us that we are his children, and he our merciful Father; shall we not then with all humility, as obedient and loving children, joyfully kiss our heavenly Father's rod, and ever say m our heart, with our Saviour Jesus Christ, Father, if this anguish and sorrow which I feel, and death which I see approach, may not pass, but that thy will is that I must suffer them. THY WILL BE DONE."
O thou hope of Israel! the Saviour thereof in the time of trouble. I acknowledge my reluctance to take up thy cross, and my weakness in bearing it; hold thou me up by fresh supplies of thy Spirit, that I may be safe. Let thy strength be perfected in my weakness. Thy promises of help are exceeding great; 'through thee I do believe the truth of them, and I pray for grace to make a right use of them. Enable me in patience to possess my soul, that when it is thy will to try my faith, I may live up to my privileges, and may find it better to suffer with Christ than to reign with the world. O Lord, thou hast showed this favour to Moses, and thou hast done more than this –Thou hast made thy witnesses glorify thee in the fires–they have marched on, fighting thy battles against hosts of foes; and they did not account their lives dear to themselves, so they might finish their course with joy, and die in faith, blessing and praising thy holy name.
O thou faithful God! thou art the same to us now, as thou wast to them. Lead me on then in thy strength, trusting in thy word, and leaning on thine arm. Thou hast promised thy flock, and I hope I am one of them "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me, and I give unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of my hand." O thou good Shepherd! let me trust in thy love and feel thy supports, that whatever lies before me to be done, or suffered, I may be enabled to do it, and to suffer it by the continual supplies of thy Spirit. And by his influence, help me to persevere till I win the prize of my high calling, and be admitted to join that great company, whom no one can number, who stand before the throne of God and the Lamb, clothed with white robes and palms in their hands: these are they who came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb; therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth upon the throne shall dwell among them; they shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun smite them, nor any heat; for the Lamb, who is in the midst of the throne, shall feed them; and shall lead them unto living fountains of water; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.
O my Jesus! I bless thee for this most glorious prospect; it is of thy mere grace that I am in any measure enabled to join that great company; it is entirely of thy special favour that I have any good hope to come to their glory; for this and for all thy mercies, to thee, with the Father and the eternal Spirit, the Three in one Jehovah, I give honour, and glory, and thanks, to-day, and I hope to do it without ceasing for ever and ever. Amen, and Amen.